Chocolate and Cacao Superfoods
Chocolate and Cacao Superfoods CACOA, CHOCOLATE, COFFEE, BLACK ANG GREEN TEA CAN CAUSE METHYLXANTHINE TOXICITY SYNDROME By Michael Lebowitz DC Source: http://www.michaellebowitzdc.com/html/Methylxanthine.html Caffeine, Paraxanthine, Theobromine and Theophylline Back in the 1970’s, I ran what was then a rather large food co-op. We carried healthy foods at great prices. We didn’t carry anything with refined sugar; no coffee or chocolate etc. Sometime between now and then, coffee and chocolate have had a PR facelift. These products are now considered health foods by many, and are sold out of some DC’s offices as well as most natural food stores. On food sensitivity testing via applied kinesiology, I find chocolate, coffee and green tea show up (give an abnormal muscle test response) only on occasion- 10%, 5% and 2%, respectively. I know that caffeine is not great for burned out adrenals, which are so common in our society- so where does the truth lie? Caffeine biochemistry have yielded some interesting answers. Caffeine as well as theobromine, paraxanthine and theophylline, are part of the methylxanthine family and can be labeled as psychoactive stimulants. These substances in varying amounts and complexes are found in coffee, tea, chocolate, cola, yerba mate and guarana. They act as a natural pesticide for the plant, paralyzing and killing certain insects. Coffee contains caffeine and theophylline, but no theobromine, while tea and chocolate are higher in theobromine. Tea actually contains more caffeine then coffee but since it is brewed weaker, the average cup of tea has less than the average cup of coffee. Caffeine is metabolized in phase 1 liver detoxification by the cytochrome P450 oxidase enzyme system (the 1A2 isozyme) into paraxanthine (84%), theobromine (12%) and theophylline (4%) Caffeine Biochemistry To quote Wikipedia, “Like alcohol and nicotine, caffeine readily crosses the blood–brain barrier that separates the bloodstream from the interior of the brain. Once in the brain, the principal mode of action is as an antagonist of adenosine receptors. The caffeine molecule is structurally similar to adenosine, and binds to adenosine receptors on the surface of cells without activating them (an "antagonist" mechanism of action). Therefore, caffeine acts as a competitive inhibitor.” Symptoms of too much caffeine (too much ingested or impaired breakdown of it) include: nervousness, irritability, panic attacks, OCD, phobias, anxiety, muscle twitching, insomnia, headaches, heart palpitations, peptic ulcers and GERD. It has been estimated that caffeine contributes to at least one of these symptoms in about 10% of the caffeine consuming population. Caffeine can also impair both short and long term memory. Despite its widespread use and the conventional view that it is a safe substance, a 2008 study suggested that pregnant women who consume 200 milligrams or more of caffeine per day have about twice the risk of miscarriage as women who consume none. Theobromine While theobromine and caffeine are similar in that they are related alkaloids, theobromine is weaker in both its inhibition of cyclic nucleotide phosphodiesterases and its antagonism of adenosine receptors. Therefore, theobromine has a lesser, but still significant, impact on the human central nervous system. However, theobromine stimulates the heart to a greater degree. While theobromine is not as addictive as caffeine, it has been cited as possibly contributing to chocolate addiction. Theophylline In susceptible individuals, theophylline can cause nausea, diarrhea, increase in heart rate, arrhythmias, and CNS excitation with resultant headaches, insomnia, irritability, dizziness and lightheadedness. Paraxanthine Paraxanthine is not produced by plants and is only observed in nature as a metabolite of caffeine in animals. The compound is produced from caffeine (1,3,7-trimethylxanthine) breakdown. After caffeine intake, roughly 84% of the original compound is demethylated at the 3-position to yield paraxanthine. Because caffeine is metabolized into theobromine, paraxanthine and theophylline, any abnormal muscle test (hypo or hypertonic) to any of the substances would implicate all of the plants as possible sources. For example, a negative response to caffeine but a positive one to theobromine would implicate coffee also, since the caffeine in coffee is partially metabolized into theobromine after ingestion. The metabolism of caffeine to theobromine may be fully functional, but the breakdown of theobromine at the next step may be impaired. This could result in the build up of theobromine in the system with resulting problems, despite no direct theobromine consumption. I have found in some people, only one of the four substances either causes a strong muscle to weaken or a weak muscle to become hypertonic (pectoralis sternal and subscapularis are preferred due to their relationship to the liver and heart). Either weakening of a strong muscle or a muscle becoming hypertonic is considered to be a positive test (problematic response). A positive response can be due to overconsumption or hypersensitivity or a compromised phase 1 detoxification system. In many of these cases, avoiding coffee, tea, yerba mate, chocolate, guarana, and cola for 1 month normalizes the test and the person can re-introduce the “foods” in moderation after that. A small % of people cannot re-introduce them and need long term avoidance. The most common symptoms I see are locked up joints (“I woke up and my neck won’t turn despite no trauma”), being prone to musculoskeletal injuries, sleeplessness, anxiety, cardiac symptoms (palpitations etc), adrenal weakness (mid afternoon fatigue, postural hypotension, etc), hemorrhoids and varicose veins.